Dixie State University (DSU, ) Introduction and Academics

Introduction

Established in 1911 by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Dixie State College of Utah has undergone several name changes on the road to becoming a state four-year college. Unlike many schools with baccalaureate programs, Dixie also offers associate’s degrees and certificates and encourages community members to take a class or two for personal or professional enrichment. Because this college has such deep roots in its community, there are several programs targeted at community/DSC integration including the Storm Chasers Club, which is a youth club for Red Storm fans, and the Short Term Intensive Training Program which, in addition to providing individual training, works with local businesses to provide employee training.

Students have many activities that they may become involved in including a competitive intercollegiate sports organization (The Red Storm), intramural sports, a campus newspaper and many different cultural and arts-focused events. There are also numerous student clubs and organizations including the Red Rock Outdoors Club which provides students and members of the community the opportunity to learn about Southern Utah by participating in such events as rock-climbing, hiking, water sports, photography and more.

The Saint George area provides many activities for students of all interests including a multitude of outdoor recreational activities, shopping, dining and historic places. The crime rate is low and the college partners with various community businesses and venues to enrich the experience of all students.

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Information Summary

Ranks 23rd in Utah and 3348th overall. See the entire top 2,000 colleges and universities list
Overall Score (about)	45.5
Total Cost On-Campus Attendance	$18,755
Admission Success rate	N/A
Student Ratio Students-to-Faculty	29 : 1
Retention (full-time / part-time)	53% / 33%
Enrollment Total (all students)	9,950

Academics

This college offers an excellent blend of programs designed to meet their community’s wide array of educational needs. DSC offers over 20 Associate in Applied Science/Certificate programs, nearly 10 associate’s degrees and about 20 bachelor’s degrees plus specializations as well as individual courses designed for personal or professional enrichment. These programs are offered via five different colleges and students may also choose interdisciplinary study in order to meet general requirements.

Some special programs that are offered include the following:

Dixie Online Writing Lab

The Dixie Online Writing Lab (OWL) is an online resource that contains articles, helpful links, suggestions for essays/papers, forums and online syllibi that help students improve writing skills. The webpage is constructed in such a manner as to be easy to use and the topics are divided out according to type so navigation is a piece of cake.

Computer Information Technology Program (CIT)

The CIT Program is a program that is expanding to meet the needs of a global, computer-driven marketplace. The Program centers around four main areas of instruction including a general CIT emphasis, Computer Science, Information Technology and Visual Technologies. The program offers state-of-the-art equipment and facilities that give students seeking careers in such areas as graphic design, multimedia development, software engineering and computer programming a hands-on environment in which to learn the skills needed to be successful in their chosen careers. The CIT Program offers many resources to students including scholarship opportunities, job searches, and CIT-related clubs and organizations.

Short Term Intensive Training Program (STIT)

The STIT Program provides short, training-intense programs for people who are wanting to start a new career quickly or who wish to upgrade current job skills in order to advance in current positions. Some examples of the programs available include Medical Transcription, PC Construction, Small Engine Repair and Quickbooks Pro. These programs may also be hosted by companies seeking to provide employee training and can be scheduled without regard to traditional semester scheduling.

Most Popular Fields of Study

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Admissions

Because Dixie State College of Utah has its roots deeply embedded in the local community and strives to provide educational enrichment to all who seek it, the admissions process is extremely simple. There are several admissions processes depending upon what kind of student is seeking entrance.

First-time students seeking to take credit courses toward a certificate or degree will need to submit the application and fee, official high school transcripts or GED scores and SAT/ACT/CPT scores. This procedure also applies to transfer students that have earned fewer than 24 credit hours. Applicants who have earned 24 college credits or more must submit official college transcripts instead of high school transcripts.

Returning students only have to submit a new application and pay a reduced fee in addition to submitting transcripts from any colleges that have been attended since the student last attended DSC. Students seeking to take non-credit courses for personal or professional enrichment need only to submit the application along with a nominal application fee in order to register for a class.

International students have a significantly different application and registration process and there are several documents that need to be submitted in order to be considered for admission. These students need to work closely with the school to ensure that the application packet is complete but DSC’s website offers a preliminary list of requirements.

Financial Aid

This school has many financial aid options available to help students pay for college, including scholarships, grants, federally-subsidized loans and work-study programs. Both need-based and merit-based scholarships are available for many different types of students. There are scholarships available for academic and athletic merit, single parents, artistic talent, and students who are pursuing degrees in various industries. These are a combination of private, state and institutional scholarships and students are automatically considered for them upon application to the school. Students may also wish to speak with the financial aid office about scholarships that they may be eligible for.

In order to begin the financial aid application process, students need to apply to the school and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that is available online starting in January. Financial information for both the student and family will be required and applicants may need to include the school code so that DSC receives the information.

Student Financial Aid Details

Ranks 5734th for the average student loan amount.
Secrets to getting the best scholarships and financial aid in Utah.

Athletics

The Dixie State Red Storm is an NCAA Division II athletics organization that competes in the Pacific West Conference. The organization offers several different sports teams including men’s and women’s basketball, soccer and cross country. Men may also choose to play football, baseball or golf while women have the additional options of softball, volleyball and tennis. In addition to the intercollegiate teams, the Ragin’ Storm also has a cheerleading squad and a dance team.

Students who wish to participate in sports but do not wish to do so at the NCAA level may do so via participating in one or more of the intramural teams available. Some of these include sand volleyball, ping pong and flag football.

Dixie State University